Only the English Go There

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Only the English Go There

Budapest

Travel Accounts of 19th-Century Hungary

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Banská Stiavnica Banská Stiavnica

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Only the English Go There

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Only the English Go There

Travel Accounts of 19th-Century Hungary

Edited by Mihály Hoppál

Béla Mázi Gábor Tóth

2019

Library and Information Center of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences

&

International Association for Hungarian Studies

Budapest

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István Monok: Self-Awareness through Outsider Reflection ... vii

Preface ... xiii

Note to the Reader ... xv

Robert Townson: A Solitary Nymph ... 19

William Hunter: Wood and Rock, Vineyards and Cornfields ... 23

Richard Bright: Hospitality and Abundance ... 30

Robert Walsh: A Certain Wildness in Their Looks ... 33

Michael J. Quin: A Large and Merry Party ... 40

Edmund Spencer: The Chateau of the Magnate, the Hut of the Peasant ... 43

Nathanael Burton: Handsome Streets, Fine Churches ... 48

Ch. B. Elliott: A Hungarian is Almost Necessarily an Accomplished Linguist .... 52

G. R. Gleig: Sobri, Our Hungarian Robin Hood ... 54

Julia Pardoe: The Horrors of the 15th ... 58

J. G. Kohl: The Clangour of Musicians ... 62

William Beattie: The Capital of an Empire ... 71

John Palgrave Simpson: Hospitality in the Hungarian ... 79

A. A. Paton: Magyarism without the German Dress ... 83

Ch. L. Brace: A People of Nature ... 87

R. B. Mansfield: A Paradise for Philologists ... 93

John Paget: They Seem a Good Deal to Resemble the Scotch ... 97

D. T. Ansted: Buda and Pest, Westminster and Lambeth ... 105

James Creagh: Into the Backwoods of Europe ... 123

N. E. Mazuchelli: The Most Picturesque Features of the Scenery ... 125

Index of Names ... 132

Index of Places ... 134

Gazetteer ... 137

The past is always relevant. Even if momentarily, at the beginning of the 21st century, the prevailing thought is that humanity needs no other knowledge but what is directly applicable. Various communities of different cultures carry diverging understandings of what they mean by tradi- tion. Some concentrate on one memory, a singular part of their heritage, and then with one great leap in time try to apply this to finding solutions to contemporary problems. Others will review their entire cultural heritage with regard to every question that needs to be asked in order to solve contemporary challenges. They want to understand what kind of answers other people in other ages and under different circumstances had provided to the same or similar questions. I personally believe that from the perspective of self-awareness, as well as from the point of view of cherishing the innovative force that a community can provide, the latter is the preferable route for Western Christianity, that is for European people.

Self-awareness is particularly important for the peoples of Central- Europe, which have gained their independence a mere three decades ago, many of whom had never been independent for such a “long” period, while others had suffered half a millennium of oppression since losing their independence. These nations were not afforded centuries to formu- late who they were, how they were similar to others and in what respects they differed from them. This is one reason why the present state of non-understanding had emerged between the Western and the Eastern parts of their common marketplace (since Europe as such does not exist).

Near the Eastern end of this market a new kind of intelligentsia is being born today, one that is reminiscent of the era when the authors of the English texts of the present volume visited the Kingdom of Hungary and Transylvania. Some groups within this community, rather anach- ronistically, seek their ancestral home in Paradise, claim that Adam and Eve spoke their language and gave rise to all cultures and civilisations.

Theories like this were not uncommon during the era of ‘national awak- ening’ in the 19th century and continue to exist to this day.

Another important source of self-awareness is how others see us. What do they think about us? During the aforementioned era, in 1802, Count Ferenc Széchényi was granted permission by Francis II (Holy Roman

Self-Awareness through

Outsider Reflection

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Self-awareness through outsider reflection Self-awareness through outsider reflection

which are incomprehensible, shocking and devastating to Hungarians.

Péter Rákos also declared his belief in the existence of interdependence.

Professionals in educational and research facilities both nearby and far away need to be acquainted with the results of Hungarian scholarship, to gain an understanding of these, but they also need the challenge of having to weigh their own academic performance.

The English have never really been very interested in the European Continent, and especially not in the Kingdom of Hungary, Transylvania or Hungary. Nevertheless, one of the best summaries of our history is The Will to Survive: A History of Hungary² by Sir Bryan Cartledge. There has been quite a distance between the time when Sir Bryan was ambassador to Hungary and the publication of the present volume, for which I am writing this preface. If we go back to the beginning of the 19th century we find an interesting opinion about the Hungarians which will be dis- cussed later on. Although not malicious, it is clearly sarcastic and certainly enlightening. It may be particularly illuminating for those who, in our day and age, still dream of the ancient ‘Hungarians’ who galloped around freely on the great plains and carried within them a primeval force of an ancient civilisation. This example also leads us on to the genre of travel literature. Indeed, the travelogue is nor par excellence historical writing, nor would it qualify as ethnography. It is the record of various nations, peoples, cities, customs and cultures written by people of various levels of training and from a range of occupations and disciplines.

The most detailed theory on travel produced in the Kingdom of Hungary is that of David Frölich (1595–1648) a mathematician and astronomer from Bártfa (today Bardejov, Slovakia) titled Cynosura pere- grinantium. It was first published in Bártfa in 1639 and then an extended version came out in Ulm in 1643 and 1644.³ Proceeding along 110 questions, he analyses in great detail the necessity for travel, its conditions and its circumstances.⁴ This was a widely known and popular work, while

2 (London: Timewell, 2006); published in Hungarian as Megmaradni: A magyar történelem egy angol szemével [To Survive: Hungarian History through the Eyes of an Englishman]

(Budapest: Rubicon, 2016).

3 Bibliotheca seu Cynosura peregrinantium, hoc est Viatorium ... a Davide Froelichio ..., Parts 1–4 (Ulm: W. Endter, 1643–44). In 1644 the four parts were published once more under a common front page: Bibliotheca, seu Cynosura Peregrinantium, hoc est, Viatorium, Omnium hactenus editionum absolutissimum ... In Duas Partes digestum: Quarum Prior, Quatuor Libris constans, complectitur I. Centuriam cum Decuria Problematu[m]

Apodemicorum, II. Multiplicia Peregrinationis Praecepta. III. Methodum Rerum exploran- darum. IV. Indicem Viarum duplicem ... Posterior Pars totidem Libris exhibet I. Geographiam Apodemicam. II. Historiographiam Apodemicam. III. Diarium Apod. perpetuum, nec non eiusdem applicationis Prognosticon quadruplex, scilicet Meteorologicum, Physiognomicum, Chiromanticu[m] & Oneirocriticum. IV. Precationes & Hymnos Apodemicos / Lectione varia ... conscriptum a Davide Frölichio ... (Ulm: W. Endter–B. Kühne, 1644).

4 Bibliotheca seu Cynosura peregrinantium liber tertius, Partis prioris, in quo res quaevis in exteris locis explorandae, visendae, atque observandae, perspicua, eaque simplicissima methodo adumbrantur ... elaboratum par Davidem Frölichum ... (Ulm: W. Endter, 1643).

Emperor and King of Hungary) to establish the Bibliotheca Regnicolaris.

This is the name the founder chose to give to the collection he intended to create, rather than Bibliotheca Nationalis or Bibliotheca Nationalis Hungariae and certainly not Bibliotheca Hungarica Nationalis. His objec- tive, in his own words, was to gather all Hungarica, that is, all documents regarding Hungaria and the Hungarians, in one accessible collection.

A century later when Hungaria collapsed and Hungary was born (which is completely different from Hungaria), the event was a shock to the entire nation. Róbert Gragger (1887–1926) began his activity as head of the Hungarian Seminar (Ungarisches Seminar) of the University of Berlin on August 19, 1916. He coined the term hungarológia (Hungarologie, Hungarian Studies) which was to develop into a discipline in its own right over the decades to follow. What did he mean by Hungarian Studies? The aim of the seminar was to teach Hungarian language and literature. In the work-plan published in 1921 in the first edition of the annual Ungarische Jarbücher Gragger elaborated on his objective. He wrote: “On the door- step of a new world [i.e., following the terrors of the First World War and the peace dictates of Trianon] ... it is the obligation of any responsible per- son to endeavour to gain an objective understanding of nations. ... The Ungarische Jahrbücher aims to create an academic platform for presenting the Hungarian language, history and culture ... Besides scholarly questions in the narrow sense we need to consider as all manner of economic, social, political and artistic problems, since for us culture means the sum of intellectual creations and institutions historically rooted in the social life of humanity.”¹

It was not until 1977 that the discipline of Hungarian studies man- aged to establish an international professional organisation (Nemzetközi Magyar Filológiai Társaság, literally meaning International Association for Hungarian Philology) and which, based on a 1996 ruling of its general assembly, changed its name to Nemzetközi Magyarságtudományi Társaság (International Association of Hungarian Studies). The second president of this organisation, Péter Rákos (1925–2002) (all presidents are expatriate scholars) summed up his opinion in the ongoing discussion on the “what is Hungarian Studies?” theme as follows, “Hungarian Studies is not what the metropolis offers, but what the location requires.” We, Hungarians have a real need for the knowledge which lies within how differently our history and our culture is seen in Ankara or Paris, Helsinki or Prague. We also need to know why this is, because this is the only way in which we can assist the work of those people around the world who strive to intro- duce Hungarians and Hungarian culture to locals. Also, this alone can help us explain to Hungarians why their country often provokes reactions

1 Robert Gragger, “Unser Arbeitsplan,” Ungarische Jahrbücher, 1 (1921), pp. 1–2; quoted in Hungarian in László Kornya, “Gragger Róbert és az Ungarische Jahrbücher” [Róbert Gragger and the Ungarische Jahrbücher], Hungarológia, 2 (1993), p. 37.

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Self-awareness through outsider reflection Self-awareness through outsider reflection

find that every point in history is still disputable; as for Etimology, I never expect to see that lady’s account settled.⁶

Henry Brooke was understandably sarcastic and British intellectuals today would probably react in much the same way were they to read the writings of Hungarian contemporaries captivated by notions of a glorious Hunnish or Scythian past. However, from the beginning of the 19th century onwards an increasing number of Hungarians visited Great Britain and began to rediscover from this vantage point the Carpathian basin and the curious peoples who populate it. They wrote down their recollections and published them. Then these texts were forgotten – both in Hungary and on the British Isles. Now the time has come to reread these pieces and to get to know each other once again. After all, the writings of the wisemen of the “free press” financed by various interest groups are barely a reliable ground from which to view either the Hungarian or the British if we strive, instead of ridicule, for genuine mutual understanding.

István Monok

it is on the front. The book consists not of paper, but sheet of papyrus from the Nile.

It was not written with a pen, but printed. This art, it should be known, was invented by the Scythians. Research pertaining to the volume in question has been recently sum- marized by Debóra Balázs, “Szamosközy István firenzei székely írásos könyvéről” [On István Szamosközy’s Florentine Book in Székely Script], Irodalomtörténeti Közlemények, 121 (2017), pp. 217–28. The author could locate Szamosközy’s book in the stock of the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana (Plut. 44. 24) and has conclusively shown that Szamosközy and Fröhlich misunderstood the situation and mistook these handwritten Etruscan letters for printed Scythian writing.

6 Brookiana: A Memoir of Henry Brooke with Anecdotes, Correspondence and a Selection from his Writings, ed. Charles Henry Wilson (London: Lewis and Roden [for Richard Phillips], 1804), vol. 1, pp. 67–72, esp. p. 70.

the exploration of travel theories has remained a popular area of research to this day. It is no surprise therefore that the book of Frölich may be found in most libraries of the British Isles and it is an often-sought book of bibliophile collectors.

The memoirs of Irish painter Henry Brooke (1738–1806) were published in 1804. In it he elaborates his views regarding the Hungarian language. Writing with considerable sarcasm about this culture, so alien to him, his reflections are connected to none other than Fröhlich himself.

He elaborates on the etymology of the Hungarian word feleség [wife] com- paring it to the Finnish equivalent (vaimo). With regard to the curious Hungarian attitude he notes

My Hungarian friend, and I’ll call him your’s, for he is very anxious to see you, is of opinion, that his countrymen brought letters with them into Europe; but I think the daughters of heaven would not be willing to travel in the company of such race.

He confirms the account which Professor Frolichius gives, of the curious MS. in the Duke of Florence’s library. In Bibliotheca Ducis Florentiae extat liber Hungaricorum Characterum cum Abyssinis Hebraeicis Syriisque affinitatem habentium, et a dextra ad sinistra more istorum scriptorum. De hoc libro scribit ita Zamonius. In Bibliotheca Magni Ducis Hetruriae Florentiae extat volumen valde vetustum, Siculorum typis et mirandis incognitisque Europae literarum notis, charta libri non est epistographia, sed ad versa tantum parte conscripta: verum ita ob papyri subtilitatem tralucent omnes literae, ut aversa quoque parte non minus quam adversa legi pariter quaeant. Non e lineis chartis, quales hodie in usu, sed Nilotica papyro volumen constat, nec calumno est exaratum, sed typo impressum, ubi versum συς[τ]όιχια dependulae singularibus lineis, per quaelibet interstitio insertis inter sese distingvuntur. Nec vero ipsi tantum characteres, sed totus etiam codex multum vetustatem omnibus argumentis prae se fert, ut jam desinant gloriari Europaei de sua Cassiterographia nuperrime inventa, cum hic liber ante multa secula impressus, literis huic orbi incognitis Scythicis, ejus rei autores manifesto proclamet. Quod Paulus Iovius, ab oriente per Scythas ad Europaeos venisse jam pridem scripsit.⁵ Heaven help us! the more we read, and the more we think, we

5 Fröhlich (Ulm, 1643), lib. 3, pars prior, cap. XXXIII. 533. Frölich probably borrowed this story from a book by Transylvanian humanist István Szamosközy (1570–1612), even though it is unlikely that he ever actually held the tome in his hands. See István Szamosközy, Analecta lapidum (Padova, 1593), p. 14; rpt. in Analecta lapidum (1593), Inscriptiones Romanae Albae Juliae et circa locorum (1598), ed. Mihály Balázs and István Monok, Adattár XVI–XVII. századi szellemi mozgalmaink történetéhez, 33 (Szeged, 1992), fols. 13a–14b. Szamosközy states that in the library of the Florentine Prince there exists a book in Hungarian orthography, letters of which are related to Abyssinian, Hebrew and Syrian characters, progressing from right to left, in line with the habit of these scripts. This is the writing followed by the Székely (Sekler) people, related to that of the Scythians. The Székely-Hungarians, he claims, had borrowed it from the Scythians and brought it with them to the Carpathian Basin in Europe. In the meantime, printing was invented. The pages of this notable book held in Florence are not scored on both sides, only one side of each page, according to the testimony of the letter, and due to the fineness of the paper each letter is as clearly discernible on the back of the page as

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It is always interesting to see ourselves through the eyes of other nations and other cultures. The gaze of the other always espies things that we ourselves, immersed in our own culture, are unable to discern. Who is the “Hungarian,” as others might characterize him? In this edition of Hungarian Heritage we resolved to use a few revealing excerpts from less broadly familiar accounts by travelers through the region to see ourselves as we appear in the mirror of descriptions by foreign wayfarers.

We choose texts from among the writings of more than a dozen authors, among them English, Irish, and Scottish, in which the voyagers recount their adventures and impressions as they voyaged across the landscapes and through the townships and cities of 19th century Hungary. There were those who traveled down the Danube by boat (W. Beattie), while others went by coach or even on foot (N. Burton). Some offer descriptions of the upper levels of society at the time, because it was primarily with members of these classes that they met (for example the account by J. Paget entitled Hungary and Transylvania), while others write instead of the lives of the lower social strata, the world of shepherds and tradesmen.

Naturally in the rush of travel a foreigner can capture only a snapshot of another nation or folk. In our case, this other is the Hungarian.

And naturally these writings are not free of stereotypes and oversim- plifications. One such oft recurring motif is mention of the puszta, or plainland, as a characteristic landscape in Hungary. Among the stereotypes the authors often mention Hungarian hospitality, fine food (with Hungarian paprika), and fine wines (R. B. Mansfield), including aszú, the famous sweet white wine of the Tokaj region. Naturally they also make mention of the baths and the beauty of the women (in whose countenances they contend to discern decidedly eastern lineaments).

Among the various ethnic groups they mention the Roma the most frequently, and of the occupations they write most often of the dashing hussars (Ch. L. Brace) and the dangerous highwaymen, including Jóska Sobri, who is referred to by name as the Hungarian Robin Hood.

One of the female authors (there are two in the collection) writes of the National Museum, at the time recently founded and constructed (Julia Pardoe). Several of the wayfarers note the peculiar nature of

Preface

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Preface

The main principle of selection was to help the contemporary reader gather some basic impressions about the interests of those venturing to come to Hungary in a period of political and social turmoil. We tried to do our best to cover as many aspects of 19th-century Hungarian life as possible.

Although an effort has been made to avoid overlappings and repetitions, some of these were included deliberately with the intention of providing the reader with some examples of how different people saw the same facets of everyday life in Hungary.

The overwhelming majority of the accounts were penned by subjects of the British crown, with one text by an American citizen and another one by the German author of a book popular at the time. We decided to publish the texts without making an effort to unify the spellings of the individual authors or to expand the easily decipherable abbreviations they use in their respective accounts. By opting for this procedure, we hope to provide the reader with sources that can be quoted without recourse to the originals. To facilitate reference, the original page numbers have been inserted in square brackets into the texts themselves and the full bibliographical data of the works reproduced here will be found at the end of each selection.

Misspelled or misunderstood Hungarian words will be easily rectified with the help of the footnotes and the two Indices preceding the Gazetteer.

The notes are meant to provide the reader with basic information and are not intended to be exhaustive.

The drawings and steel-plates reproduced were first published in Bilder- Album aus Ungarn: Taschenbuch mit 18 Stahlstichen nach Zeichnungen von N. v. Barabás (Leipzig: G. A. Haendel, n.d.), pp. 4–5 [63], 36–37 [66], 56–57 [34], Richard Bright, Travels from Vienna through Lower Hungary;

With Some Remarks on the State of Vienna during the Congress, in the Year 1814 (Edinburgh: A. Constable, 1818), facing title page [107], pp.

192–93 [112], 280–81 [58], Magyarország és Erdély eredeti képekben, text by János Hunfalvy, drawings by Lajos Rohbock, 3 vols. (Darmstadt: G.

G. Lange, 1856–64), vol. 1 (1856), pp. 68–69 [75], 74–75 [94], 82–83 [37], 124–25 [119], 204–5 [24], 212-13 [73], 222–23 [23], 270–71 [64], vol. 2 (1860), pp. 48–49 [72], 182–83 [25], 196–97 [27], 216–17 [60], 296–97 [19], 310–11 [33], 314–15 [48], 340–41 [46], 342–43 the Hungarian language and observe how distinctive it is from other

European languages (Ch. L. Brace, M. J. Quin), as well as mentioning how members of the nobility use Latin in their homes, which in the 19th century was still taught in grammar schools.

The authors frequently make mention of historical figures as well in their accounts (such as Attila the Hun, King Mátyás, and the Ottoman Turks). Several of them note in this context the love of freedom among the Hungarians, their national pride, and their yearning for independence. They observe that the love of homeland is a strong sentiment indeed, one that should be understood as patriotism rather than chau- vinism. In most cases these descriptions are an apt tool with which to contest cultural prejudice.

Margareth Mackey and John Shaw were of great assistance to me in the initial collection of materials in Edinburgh. I had the pleasure of enjoying their hospitality while I searched the fine library there for the writings of these wayfarers.

Finally I would like to express my gratitude to our two guest editors, Béla Mázi and Gábor Tóth, without whom this volume could never have come into being. Their profound erudition greatly enriched the selection.

I also thank them for the selection of illustrations, which gives a general picture of the cities and townships of 19th century Hungary and the rai- ment and garb of the times.

One could compile another volume comprised of the jottings of the earliest travelers through Hungary, say those of the 16th and 17th centuries, and indeed the reminiscences and accounts of visitors to the region in the 20th century would no doubt offer ample material for yet another volume. Perhaps in the coming years we will devote one or perhaps more editions of Hungarian Heritage to these writings, for it remains our goal to familiarize as wide a public as possible with the historical roots of Hungarian intangible cultural heritage, and the accounts of foreign travelers to the region are eminently suited to this aim.

Mihály Hoppál

Note to the Reader

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Note to the Reader

[30], 386–87 [106], vol. 3 (1864), pp. 62–63 [84], 128–29 [98], and Panorama der Oesterreichischen Monarchie oder malerisch-romantisches Denkbuch (Pest and Leipzig: G. A. Hartleben, 1839), vol. 1, pp. 230–31 [114], 260–61 [74], 296–97 [43], 296–97 [49]. The numerals in square brackets indicate the corresponding page here.

We are grateful to Prof. Gábor Náray-Szabó (Library of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences) for permission to reproduce material from the Library’s stock. We thank Thomas Cooper for his editorial assistance and suggestions, Dr. Róbert Hermann (Institute of Military History), for information on August von Heydte, Diana Bakó (Department of Manuscripts and Rare Books, Library of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences) and Dr. Tamás Sajó (studiolum.com) for producing the type- script, and Klára Láng (Microforms and Photo Laboratory, Library of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences) for the scans and photos.

*

In this revised edition we corrected a number of annoying typos that corrupted the text of 2008, added two new notes, modified the short biography of Edmund Spencer, and compiled indices for the names and places that appear in our selection of texts. The title we have chosen for this edition, Only the English Go There, is explained in the motto on the next page. We would like to thank Orsolya Frank for translating István Monok’s new introduction into English.

The Editors

The Signor Inspettore was fortunately at home, and greeted us with the pleasant smile and ready courtesy which one invariably meets with in the people of this land. We were, however, once more doomed to failure. He knew everything apparently but that which we had come to learn; he certainly did not know the way to Pest, but bidding us wait, he retired to an inner chamber, whence he soon returned bearing under his arm an enormous map, his radiant countenance proclaiming that he had at last solved the difficulty.

“Perdono, Signore! I have ascertained. You must go hence to Nabrisina. There you will have to wait two hours, when another train will take you on through Cormöns to the Hungarian frontier.” And by the way he spoke of Cormöns one would have supposed it to be the extreme limits of civilisation.

“Not many strangers travel this way to Hungary,” added he.

“But do not your people sometimes travel?” we inquired.

“Ma no!” was the reply, given in that sharp, incisive tone in which every Italian pronounces that latter monosyllable. “We do not often travel, and to Hungary never. Basta! the climate of Hungary e una clima da Diavolo;” adding with a shrug of the shoulders–the full significance of which we duly appreciated–“Perdono, Signore! Only the English go there.”

Mazuchelli, Magyarland, vol. 1, pp. 11–12.

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The bishop’s palace at Nagyvárad

[252] In the afternoon I went to the hot-baths, which are about four or five miles from the town.¹ Some of these are only covered by a shed, others are quite open. Here I saw the strangest sight sure mortal ever beheld. At Gross Wardein begins the district of Hungary inhabited by the Wallachians,² as may be seen in the map,³ and many [253] of the lower orders of the inhabitants of this town are of this nation, which is a member of the Greek church, and follows the old style. This, therefore, was the Pentecost of the Wallachians; and a swarm of them was come here to enjoy the pleasures and advantages of the baths, so that most of them were full, and presented really a sight which my pen is no way capable of describing. All ages and sexes, with skins of all hues, and with features of all expressions, were washing their hides in these cleansing waters. [...]

A Solitary Nymph

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A Solitary Nymph Robert Townson

Some of these good women had their little children in their arms. I noticed two or three young Ziguiners ⁴ amongst them; these, though so young, were as dark as Mulattoes: no doubt with this colour they came into the world. But this was not all I saw: this odious sight only served to set off to greater advantage a solitary nymph in another bath; and now you have cause, reader, to envy my good fortune. For here alone, and only under the grey canopy of heaven, “whilst evening drew her crimson curtains round,” [254] and the serenity of the air and the melody of the neighbouring woods awakened sweet sensibility, friend to our pleasures, but often enemy, alas! to our peace; separate from the vulgar throng and all alone, as if conscious of her superior beauty, the loveliest girl sure Nature ever formed lay quite exposed, reclining in a shallow bath in the very attitude of desire. A thin short petticoat, which the tepid water wrapped close about her limbs, or else wantonly spread wide abroad, as if, proud of its beauteous guest, it was eager to shew her delicate shape, or else expose all her charms, was the only covering she had on. Youth, the youthfulness of eighteen years, sparkled in her eyes and glowed in her lovely countenance;

and her heaving bosom and swelling breasts announced that she had reached that happy period of life, at which kind Nature having invested her fair offspring with their brightest charms, warms them with love, and teaches them to exult in being loved. She suffered my enamoured gaze, and smiled; and by her melting looks expressed she felt the presence of the God of Love and her own frailty. [...]

[256] In 1785 they rebelled in Transylvania, and with great cruelty murdered many of the nobility.⁵ Their priests, whom they call Popes, are uncommonly brutish, and it is calculated that in twenty executions there is always a Pope.⁶ Now, or till within a few years, the most frightful punishments were inflicted upon them, flaying, empaling, &c. &c. But the most shocking punishments I have read of, were those which were inflicted on the leaders of the peasants’ war in the beginning of the sixteenth century in the Banat. They are too [257] frightful to detail. The chief,⁷ as king, was set upon a red hot iron throne, and an iron crown was put on his head, and a sceptre of the same in his hand, both red hot. In this state, half roasted, nine of his principal accomplices, nearly starved to death with hunger, were let loose upon him, with threats of instant death, if they did not fly upon and eat their pretended king. Six obeyed, and fell upon him and ate him. Three others who would not, were immediately cut to pieces. Yet under all this torment the unfortunate man never murmured!! [...]

[258] I only passed the night at gloomy Debretzin, and then pushed on to Tokay, which I reached about four in the afternoon. I passed through the district of the Haydukes: six or seven towns, with two-and-twenty thousand inhabitants, form this district. They are the descendants of some troops which, in the beginning of the last century, at the termination of a war, were settled here, and received lands on condition of rendering military service. They have their own magistrates, and are not under the

government of the county. Judging from externals, they are not more opulent than their neighbours. From Debretzin to Tokay the country is quite flat, being part of the great plain: it grows a good deal of corn and Indian wheat, but it is chiefly pasture land.

By the road-side I found a large party of zigeuners. How admirably they are pourtrayed [!] by Cowper⁸ in these lines: [259]

I see a column of slow-rising smoke O’ertop the lofty wood that skirts the wild.

A vagabond and useless tribe there eat Their miserable meal. A kettle slung Between two poles upon a stick transverse, Receives the morsel; flesh obscene of dog, Or vermin, or, at best, of cock purloined From his accustomed perch. Hard-saring race!

They pic their fuel out of every hedge,

Which kindled with dry leaves, just saves unquench’d The spark of life. The sportive wind blows wide Their fluttering rags, and shows a fawny skin, The vellum of the pedigree they claim.

Hungary may be considered as the seat of this people. They are here very numerous, and lead the same vagabond life they do in other countries. Several of the later Hungarian sovereigns have endeavoured to render them sedentary, but with not much success; they still stroll about the country as tinkers and musicians, but are not seen in such hordes as formerly. It is but a few years ago (I think under Joseph II.⁹) that about a score of them were condemned and executed in the Great Hontor¹⁰ county for being – Anthropophagists; but, when it was too late, it was suspected that their Judges had been too hasty in their condemnation. They were not seen in Hungary before 1418.

Source

Travels in Hungary, with a Short Account of Vienna in the Year 1793 (London: G. G. and J.

Robinson, 1797).

Note

1 Félixfürdô, located at a distance of 8 kms from Nagyvárad, is part of Váradszentmárton today. At the time of Townson’s visit the baths belonged to the Premonstratensian Order.

2 Between the end of the 17th century and 1867, Transylvania, a territory in which there

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Nagymaros and the fortress of Visegrád Robert Townson

[226] The ordinary dress of the burghers and the higher class of peasantry, in this part of the country, consist of a light blue jacket and pantaloons, and huz- zar¹ boots with tassels and spurs. The jacket is edged with fur, and both jacket and pantaloons are embroidered down the seams. The poorer class is obliged to be satisfied with a short shirt and trowsers [!] of coarse linen, the fabric of the country. As the weather grows cooler, they throw a rough blanket across their shoulders, and, in winter, clothe themselves with a sheep-skin garment, which reaches down to their heels, and which, according to the temperature of the atmosphere, they wear with the wool or skin next them. At night they convert it into a bed. They are tall, stout, and straight grown, but have heavy countenances, and their long black greasy hair [227] and huge whiskers give them the appearance of savages. The men wear round felt hats with broad rims and shallow crowns, and both men and women go without shoes and stockings. The women, who are not by any means so well-looked as the men,

Wood and Rock,

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unter were numerically significant Romanian-speaking communities, was a separate adminis-

trative unit within the Habsburg Empire. To the south of Transylvania lies the province of Wallachia or, as it is known today, Oltenia. The term Wallachian was not infrequently used to refer to Romanian speakers.

3 Townson’s map is not reproduced here. Instead the reader is referred to the map by Zsuzsa Draskovits on the verso and recto of the front and back cover, respectively.

4 Correctly: Zigeuners (German for Gypsy).

5 Reference to the revolt of Horea, Cloşca and Crişan in Transylvania in 1784–85.

6 Both pope, an orthodox priest, and Pope, the bishop of Rome, derive from the Greek papas, the diminutive of father.

7 Reference to the peasants’ revolt of 1514, led by György Dózsa, who was tortured and executed.

8 William Cowper (1731–1800) was a popular English pre-romantic poet. The quotation is from his The Task: A Poem in Six Books (London: printed for J. Johnson, 1785), Book I, The Sofa, lines 557-569.

9 Joseph II (1741–1790), Holy Roman Emperor, ruler of the Habsburg lands between 1780–1790.

10 Hont county in historical northern Hungary. The reference is to the 150 Gypsies, 41 (or 42 or 45) of whom, after confessions extracted under torture, were executed for crimes including cannibalism in 1782. For a short account, see Angus M. Fraser, The Gypsies, 2nd edn. (Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 1995), pp. 194–195.

Robert Townson (1763–1827) was a scholar, scientist, settler, and mem- ber of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. As a professor at the University of Göttingen, Germany, he made extensive tours to France, Austria and Hungary. The account of his 1793 visit to Hungary was published four years later and was translated into French in 1798. Works written by him in those years include Observationes physiologicae de amphibiis (Göttingen, 1794), The Philosophy of Mineralogy (London, 1798), and Tracts and Observations in Natural History and Physiology (London, 1799).

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Wood and Rock, Vineyards and Cornfields William Hunter

resort of gaiety and pomp, is now so overgrown with briars and weeds, that, without a guide, it would be impossible to find one’s way. How expressive are these changes of the reverses of human life, and I never witness them without being convinced of the frail reliance we ought to place on the duration of present enjoyment. About half way up, there is [237] a round stone structure called Salomon’s Tower, from that king having been imprisoned there for eighteen months by his rival Ladislaus. The ruins of the castle are considerable, but none of the apartments remain entire, and it is falling fast to decay.

The Hungarians, indeed, have given themselves but little pains to preserve, or elucidate, the antiquities of their country, nor, as far as I can learn, has any engraving ever been published of this very remarkable and interesting spot.

The views from it are, in a high degree, beautiful and romantic. The windings of the Danube, the boldness and inequalities of the opposite shore, the pleas- ing mixture of wood and rock, vineyards and cornfields, bounded by distant hills, contribute to form a rich, a varied, and an enchanting landscape. [...]

[239] A few miles farther on we came to Watzen, which is a considerable place, and remarkable for containing the handsomest cathedral in Hungary. It was constructed by the above mentioned cardinal,⁵ who was a great benefactor of the town, and, by his numerous acts of munificence, contributed to efface the remembrance of its past misfortunes, and to lay the foundations of its present flourishing state. Watzen contains about eight thousand inhabitants, chiefly Germans and Greeks, who are engaged in various branches of commerce, particularly cattle and wine; and it is distinguished for its schools, and other public institutions. [...]

[240] A few miles before we got to Buda, we crossed the plain of Rakosch where the kings of Hungary were formerly elected, and where upwards of ninety thousand armed horsemen, constituting the nobility of the country, are kept in a state of slavish subordination, and are not only employed in

domestic drudgery but in the laborious parts of agriculture, such as, digging, planting, and following the plough. [...]

[234] On our arrival at the town of Vissegrade, we stopped at the house of one of the count’s acquaintance, who received us with the greatest civility, and insisted on our remaining to dine with him. Whilst dinner was preparing, I went, attended by a guide, to see the castle. It was, for some centuries, a favourite summer residence of the Hungarian kings, and is now one of the most remarkable ruins in the country. Charles I.² who resided here almost entirely, enlarged it, and fitted it up in a style of magnificence that was the wonder and [235] envy of his contemporaries. [...] The gardens, in those times, corresponded with the splendour of the castle. They were adorned with pleasure houses and statues and fountains of marble; and the park was stocked with every species of game. Among its many illustrious tenants was Mathias Corvinus³, a king whose memory is, to this day, held, and deservedly so, in pious veneration by the Hungarians, and who may be justly ranked among the benefactors of mankind. He was a protector and encourager of letters, at a period when the realms of genius and science were nearly obscured; and, had it not been [236] for the glorious efforts, and fostering care, of a few such men, the sacred spark might have been completely extinguished. He used frequently to retire to this spot, to relieve himself from the weight of public affairs, and indulge in the pleasures of the chase. After the death of Lewis II.⁴ it was besieged and taken by the Turks, and the numerous misfortunes which afterwards befell it, at last reduced it to its present forlorn condition. It is still majestic in its ruins from its towering height, captivating from the romantic beauty of the scenery which surrounds it, and highly interesting from its past celebrity. The ascent is rugged and steep, and the path to this once noted

Vác Eger

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revenues that may fail during its continuation, a successor to the late prelate is not likely to be soon appointed. The bishops in former times resided in the castle, which stands on the summit of a steep and lofty rock, and has, in the course [250] of its history, been many times attacked, defended, and subdued. The present palace has no very state- ly appearance; but the gardens, before they were neglected, must have been remarkably pleasant. [...]

[252] Mischkolz is a small neat town, pleasantly situated between two hills, and encircled with woods, vineyards, and fruitful meadows. The inhabitants, who are mostly Hungarians, are engaged in the cultivation of [253] their vines and orchards, and the chief business of the women is spinning. Several antient[!] families are established here. The climate is good, the air pure and healthy, and provisions cheap; but what this town is most remarkable for, is the number and depth of its wine cellars, which are cut out of the solid rock. I only stopped here to change horses, and proceeded to Diosgyor, a village a few miles distant. I drove immediately to the house of the prefect, who received me with the greatest civility, and insisted on my remaining with him for the night. Being desirous of seeing as much as I could of the place before it grew dark, shortly after my arrival, he and one of his son’s accompanied me, on foot, about the town and its environs.

Diosgyor is of small extent, but its situation is in a high degree beautiful and romantic. It stands in a valley enclosed by hills, which are covered with vineyards and woods. Orchards, very productive in fruit, adjoin the houses, and [254] a stream, abounding in trout, runs through the town. One of the greatest curiosities is a fine ruin called Maria’s castle.⁷ [...]

have frequently assembled to execute that solemn right. This celebrated spot I have already noticed, but I viewed it a second time with additional interest.

I felt, whilst I was beholding it, a mingled emotion of veneration and terrour:

[241] veneration for that awful exercise of power which a people administers, when they place an equal on a throne; and terrour at the recollection of those violent heats and animosities of faction which such an exercise of power must inevitably create. A crown is, indeed, too great a prize to contend for; and nothing can prove more decisively the radical defects of an elective monarchy, than the scenes of bloodshed and confusion which that form of government, wherever it has prevailed, has uniformly produced. Every competition throws the kingdom into a convulsion, compared with which, no advantages to which it lays claim, can possibly make amends. Even supposing, what in a populous and extensive country can never be the case, that personal quali- fications were the cause of elevation; yet it is not possible for the virtues of any one man to repair those mischiefs, which were occasioned by the very act that raised him to this office. And, if they could be repaired; at his death, the same factions [242] must revive; the same risks must be encountered; the same divisions must prevail. This, in fact, is one palpable reason why, in elective monarchies, learning, civilization, and the arts, have never made a rapid progress. Whilst the other countries of Europe, acknowledging hereditary right, were improving in every branch of polite and elegant literature, we find Hungary and Poland laid waste by civil discord, groaning under the yoke of feudal despotism, and delivered up as a prey to the passions of men, who were continually sacrificing public advantage to private ambition. [...]

[248] Erlau is of considerable extent, and charmingly situated in a fruitful valley, surrounded with hills, which are covered with vineyards.

A small river, near the banks of which are warm baths, runs through it, and divides it into two counties. It contains near twenty thousand inhabitants, many of whom are Greeks who keep shops and warehouses, and, as a reward for the services of their forefathers in driving away the Turks, enjoy particular privileges. It is celebrated for being the seat of an university⁶; one of the richest bishopricks in the kingdom; and for the red [249] wine that is grown in the vicinity, which is highly esteemed for its flavour, and has an extensive and ready sale over every part of the emperor’s dominions.

The university forms one side of the large square of the town, and, having been a few years back repaired and beautified, makes a splendid appearance. The cieling of the hall which contains the library, is elegantly painted, and the observatory is provided with a fine collection of instru- ments; but the number of students has lately declined, and the professors have many idle hours on their hands.

The revenues of the see amount to the enormous sum of 200,000 florins, or 20,000 ł. sterling, but it has been, for several years, without a representative; and, as the king has the privilege, during war, of applying, to the defrayment of his military expences, all church

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5 Christian Anton von Migazzi (1714–1803), bishop of Vác, later archbishop of Vienna.

6 The Collegium Juridicum Foglarianum of the Archbishopric of Eger, founded in 1741.

7 Mary of Anjou, queen of Hungary between 1382–95.

8 Aszú is known throughout the English-speaking world as Tokay.

At a short distance from the castle, there is another curiosity, known by the name of the Long Cellar; an appellation it well deserves, as, on exploring it a few years back, when it was discovered, it was found to com- municate with Erlau, which is at the distance of six German miles. [...]

[259] Leaving Diosgyor, as I advanced towards Szikszo, the country became very hilly, and on every side was covered with vineyards. The town, which is small, stands on a fertile plain, enriched with grain, vines, and fruit-trees.

Shortly after leaving it, I had a fine view of the mountain of Tokay, so celebrated for the wine which bears its name, and of which every one has heard, and wishes to taste. It rises to a considerable height in the form of a cone;

and a few acres of it, or of some other favourite hill in the neighbourhood, is a valuable possession. The greatest part of the Tokay wine does not grow immediately in the vicinity of the town, but round several villages which are scattered to the north of it, to the distance of twenty [260] miles. It is only, however, on confined spots that the most precious is produced; and, from the small quantity that is made, it fetches an exorbitant price, even in the country. As the great object, to secure a good harvest, is to let the grape hang till it is half-dried, the vintage seldom takes place till the middle or latter end of October; and, if the weather be favourable, is even deferred till November.

Success, however, is very precarious, and, if rain or a hard frost suddenly set in, almost every thing is lost. When the season continues open, many grapes of every bunch shrivel, and are allowed to remain on the stalk till they become a perfect sweetmeat. These are carefully picked off, and pressed apart; and, in proportion as the syrup that comes from them is mixed with the juice of the remainder, depends the flavour and value of the wine. The best is rich and oily, of considerable strength, and, when new, very sweet; but after it has been kept for forty or fifty years, it loses that quality in a great degree, and becomes, [261] though still luscious, an exquisite, wine. [...]⁸

Source

Travels through France, Turkey, and Hungary, to Vienna, in 1792. To Which are Added, Several Tours in Hungary, in 1799 and 1800. In a Series of Letters to his Sister in England, 3rd edn. (London: J. White, 1803), vol. 2.

Note

1 Hussars, or members of the Hungarian cavalry.

2 Charles I, also known as Charles Robert of Anjou, was king of Hungary between 1307–

42.

3 Matthias Corvinus, king of Hungary between 1458–90.

4 Louis II, king of Hungary between 1516–26. He was killed in the Battle of Mohács on August 29, 1526.

William Hunter was a barrister-at-law according to the catalog of the British Library. Nothing more is known about him.

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Hospitality and Abundance before, each country, to the great benefit of works of imagination, and to the unspeakable advantage of national spirit and improvement, adopted its own language, as best suited to convey its own associations and feelings. [...]

[446] The hospitality of the Graf’s³ supper-table, and the interest of his conversation, soon dispelled the remembrance of our perils. It may be truly said, that the character of these meals was hospitality and abundance, without unnecessary or irksome parade. The Graf was always, both at table and in his excursions in the carriage, attended by two young men, dressed as Hussars without arms; and, besides these, three or four servants, out of livery, generally served at the table. The conversation was always instructive, full of good temper, and enlarged views on the part of my host. Before we parted in the even-[447]ing, he planned another excursion for me on the following day, when I was put under the guidance of Dr Gerrard, the family-physician, a man of extensive learning, and acquainted with no less than eleven languages, to visit the warm-baths in the neighbourhood, which are at the distance of about two miles, near the source of the river Heviz. As a bathing place, it is little worthy of mention, and is evidently fitted up by the Graf only for the lower class of people, who come there during the summer, and find a surgeon on the spot ready to administer their favourite remedy of scarification or cupping. The only dwelling is a miserable house, converted into an inn during the summer, and affording very mean accommodation. As a hot-spring, however, it is curious, from the quantity of heated sulphureous water which it discharges in the middle of a low and marshy plain, in which it has formed a pond.

This covers a space of not much less than two acres, and the water which runs from it, turns in its course two or three mills. I cannot speak exactly to its temperature, but it is very considerable, even in the canal by which it discharges itself. The water emits a strong sulphureous vapour, and is of a bluish colour. The Nymphaea alba was in fine bloom, and a multitude of a species of cyprinus were playing about, appearing greatly to enjoy the warmth of the water.⁴

Source

Travels from Vienna through Lower Hungary; With Some Remarks on the State of Vienna during the Congress, in the Year 1814 (Edinburgh: Archibald Constable, 1818).

Notes

1 Archduke Joseph of Habsburg (1776–1847), palatine of Hungary (1796–1847).

2 Latin was the official language in Hungary until 1844.

3 Count György (I) Festetich of Keszthely (1755–1819), founder of the first agricultural school in Hungary, called the Georgicon.

[213] It is a very general cause of complaint and regret amongst the Hungarians, that their language has been more than neglected; they say it has been discouraged by the Austrian government, and they are thankful to the Palatine¹ who has countenanced the establishment of their national theatre.

This is a feeling natural and honourable; it must, however, be confessed, that the Hungarian tongue is local, and, in its application, perhaps more partial than that of any other country. The mixture of languages in Hungary itself is so great, that scarcely one third of the inhabitants speak the Hungarian;

and thus, every one who hopes to travel beyond the village in which he was born, is compelled to learn some other language or dialect. Hence probably it is that Latin has been retained as a common medium of communication.² All the older writings are in this language, and, at the present moment, Hungary presents in miniature the picture of the whole continent of Europe,

Hospitality and Abundance

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[331] Our way next day was still along the banks of the Marosch, on a narrow road that skirts the river on the flank of a range of hills. About nine, we arrived at Zaam, a village close on the water. Here we were stopped, to know if we had any salt. We had entered the confines of Hungary, beyond which the transportation of this article is strictly pro- hibited. The examination, however, was not very minute, as they took our words as a sufficient assurance. [...]

[333] At one we came to the village of Saboraz,¹ and stopped before the gate of an Hungarian nobleman. The house and demesne were exactly like those of an English gentleman, and adjoining to it a church with a red spire.

The house and church were fresh painted and whitewashed, with a smooth lawn, and well kept gravel walks, having the air of neatness and elegance, which characterize the seats in England. While we and our horses were breakfasting together in our usual way, in front of this English prospect, the

The cloister at Máriaradna

A Certain Wildness in Their Looks

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alsh Richard Bright

4 Nymphaea alba, also known as the European White Waterlily. Dr. Bright was the first to describe the species found in the natural thermal lake of Hévíz.

Richard Bright (1789–1858) was an English physician and early pioneer of nephrology. He had a special affection for Hungary and in 1815 he lived in Festetich Castle in Keszthely, where there is a large plaque: “To the memory of the English physician, scientist, and traveler who was one of the pioneers in the accurate description of Lake Balaton.” In 1833 he was elected a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. His works include Address at the Commencement of a Course of Lecturers on the Practice of Medicine (London, 1832), Clinical Memoirs on Abdominal Tumours (London, 1860), and studies in the Medico-Chirurgical Transactions.

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A Certain Wildness in Their Looks Robert Walsh

in a third, horses were throwing their riders, who were dragged along by the bridle or stirrups; a fourth was a sick bed-chamber, and the family weeping and praying round it. In all these the Lady appeared in the sky, in a corner of the picture; and stretching out her hand, saved the victims of accident or disease. But by far the greater number of these pictures represented people vomiting blood, from whence we concluded it was a common disorder in this place; and we were told, on inquiry, that it was so, though from [339] what cause could not be known. The chapel is spacious and elegant, with a fine organ. The roof was painted with the Assumption of the Virgin, who was trampling the crescent under her feet in her ascent. Compartments in the wall represented different actions in the life of St. Francis, by a German artist of Pest; and the rest, like those of the gallery, were covered with votivae tabellae. But that which attracted most attention, was the picture of the Virgin herself which had worked all the miracles, and was hanging over the High Altar. It was a paltry paint- ing, about two feet square, representing a female encircled with a large gilt crown, holding out an infant decorated with another. It was blackened, apparently, with smoke; and when we inquired the cause, our conductor told us that the infidel Turks had cast it into the fire, where, to their confusion, it remained unconsumed; and walked out uninjured, except by the smoke, which it retained as an irrefragable proof of the miracle ever after.

This is a source of great revenue to the convent. [...]

[342] In the evening we arrived at the edge of the great Steppe of Hungary, which extends from hence, in one vast level plain, without any variation, as far as the walls of Pest. When we entered on this plain, we soon wandered from the right path, and got entangled in sand flats and swamps: it became pitch dark; and as it seemed impossible to extricated ourselves, and regain the road, where [343] we had lost all clue to guide us, we had no other prospect but of remaining till morning in our waggon, in this dismal place; and prepared ourselves to keep watch and watch all night, in turn, while the rest slept; as the people of this district are a race of Tartars, and retain all the propensities of their tribe, of which robbery is the principal – particularly the robbery of horses. [...]

[346] [T]hough the villages sometimes consisted of three or four hundred houses, they were all built with the same dull uniformity – a long building like a cow-house, – a pit to catch the rain-water before each door;

and not a tree, or a shrub, or a flower, indicated that the inhabitants had a taste or inclination for anything beyond the bare necessaries of animal life. The men and women were clothed in sheep skins, and acompanied by fierce shaggy dogs as wild as themselves: in fact, they seemed as dull and stupid as the cattle they attended; and, like them, did not appear to have a wish or a thought beyond their condition. Surprised at the contrast we now saw, between this dull and barbarous race and the active and intelligent peasants we had just left, we inquired into the cause; and a cause was assigned, which fully accounted for the effect. These villages,

Horse-drawn carriage

proprietor of the chateau issued from the gate. He was a large, portly man, with an erect proud countenance, and wrapped in a rich pelisse of fur. We saluted him in passing, by touching our hats, which he returned in a very haughty and disdainful manner; convincing us we were no longer among the Saxon peasantry, where a general mediocrity of circumstances makes every man look upon his neighbour with equal respect. [...]

[337] Beyond this was the town of Radna, where we arrived at twelve o’clock, and stopped to dine. While dinner was preparing, we went to see a celebrated convent of Franciscans, situated on an eminence near the town. The church of this convent is very famous, all over Hungary, for a picture of the Virgin, which from the earliest ages worked stupendous miracles, and is visited by pilgrims from all parts. It is attached to the convent; and, with its spires, forms a noble object on the hill that over- looks the town, and is dedicated to St. Mary of Radna. We ascended to it [338] by long flights of stone steps; and when we entered, a brother of the order, exceedingly ignorant and talkative, attended us through the edifice. All the walls of the galleries and corridors of the convent, through which we passed, were covered with pictures, from one end to the other, and from the floor to the ceiling. These pictures were generally about a foot square, and were presented to the convent by persons who had been cured of any disease, or preserved from any calamity, by the intervention of the Lady of Radna. They represented the incident, and were marked ex voto; and, in fact, were the votivae tabellae of the Romans. One depicted a carriage upsetting, and the people crushed under the wheels; another, a boat sinking in a river, and the passengers in the act of being drowned;

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A Certain Wildness in Their Looks Robert Walsh

with long radii, and broad wheels with long axes, are of immense use in this flat country, where we never met with an overshot water-mill, or a wind-mill. Another circumstance, also, began now to mark the villages. In the open market-place stood a statue on a pedestal, clad in a shaggy robe, and in the attitude of St. John [359] in the wilderness. This, however, was not St. John the Baptist, as I had supposed; but St. John Nepomucene, – a saint held, in the Austrian dominions, in much higher estimation. He was a native of Nepomuca, on the river Mulda, in Bohemia; and for refusing to reveal the secrets of confession to Winceslas, King of the Romans, in 1378, he was cast into the river, where he perished; hence he was made the Patron of Rivers, and his statue is set up, not only on every bridge, but in every town where there is neither bridge nor river. [...]

[365] The town of Buda stands on the high and abrupt banks of the Danube, opposite to Pest. The country assumes a totally different character on this side of the river; rising into high hills and rocky eminences, on one of which is built the city of Buda, or Offen. We entered it from Pest, by a bridge of sixty-three large boats across the river, here five hundred and thirty paces wide. [...]

[366] Buda was originally called Sicambri, from a people of that name, whom Antoninus Pius and Severus established here as a garrison, to keep in check other Barbarians. A district below the town is still shown as their city – having some ruins and an aqueduct, from whence a subter- ranean passage leads to the citadel above. The name of Buda is derived from Buda, a brother of Attila, in the fifth century.² It is by the Germans called Offen, or Upper, alluding to its high situation, and so it is always designated in German maps. It had been the residence of the native Kings we learned, were the property of noblemen, who retained all the rights of

feudal Barons. Their tenantry were Serfs, or slaves of the soil, and, like the cattle, were the moveable property of the Lord. [...]

[347] The inhabitants are exclusively Catholics, but there is neither a school nor a visible church in any of the villages. Indeed, though they have a local habitation, they are little different from the erratic tribes that formerly wandered over these plains, except that they are [348] not so free.

Their villages are but temporary abodes; when the soil is worked out, it is abandoned till it again recovers itself, and the necessary parts of the cabanes are removed to another place, with as much facility as the materials of the tents of the ancient Scythians. Hence it was, that all those villages through which we passed had the appearance of recency, as if they were just planted, and the houses looked as new as if they had just been built. [...]

[351] The Kreish, called in German maps the Köros, has two different branches, - one called Swartze Köros, or the Black River – the other Weisse Köros, [352] or the White: they both unite, and fall into the Teisse, a considerable way above the Marosch. It winds here, with many inflections, through sandy plains clothed in short herbage like Salisbury Plain, and, like it, is covered with sheep. We were told they were of the Merino bred lately brought into this country, apparently so well adapted for their pasture. They had straight horns, twisted in a spiral form, and were guarded by a rude race of shepherds, dressed in their skins, with dogs equally fierce and shaggy. I had been warned against trusting myself with these dogs; but forgetting the caution, I was wandering over the plains, collecting plants, while the waggon was slowly dragged along the sandy road, when I heard a cry like that of a pack of hounds: I soon saw that the dogs of several flocks had united, when they saw me at a distance by myself, and, with horrible yells, were makig towards me. Had I been a little further from help, I should certainly have suffered the fate of Actaeon; but the shepherds and the drivers of the waggon, alarmed by the opening yells of this fierce pack, immediately ran towards me, and the dogs were stopped before they reached me. On this immense plain were scattered, we were told, 400,000 of these sheep, which we saw in every direction. [...]

[358] About nine we arrived at Mieresch, inhabited principally by Serfs, and forming a strong contrast to the village we had left; yet far superior to those of the same description on the other side of the Teiss. Here, for the first time, we saw those large horizontal wheels which work mills and other machines: at each side of the streets, as we passed along, were large circular sheds, open at the sides, supported on posts, and covered by a conical roof. Under each of these was revolving an immense horizontal wheel, of one hundred feet in diameter. The moving power was a single horse; and the lever was so long, and the wheel so well balanced, that the whole machine was turned with perfect ease, and the process went on without noise of friction. The wheel was not more than three feet from the ground, and the horse attached to its periphery. These low wheels

Buda Castle and Krisztinaváros

Only the English Go There

Only the English Go There

Travel Accounts of 19th-Century Hungary

Only the English Go There

Only the English Go There

Travel Accounts of 19th-Century Hungary

Contents

Self-Awareness through

Outsider Reflection

Preface

Note to the Reader

A Solitary Nymph

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Source

Note

Wood and Rock,

Vineyards and Cornfields

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Source

Note

Source

Notes

Hospitality and Abundance

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A Certain Wildness in Their Looks

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